From the Start
by Hero's Chanson
Summary: "He watched Joey's fingers, this time tapping lightly on the mattress arhythmically, as he thought back to all those months ago. Images of a cool night and broken sidewalks and dishevelled bedsheets flitted across his mind, but he struggled to think back further for a motive. He found none." Spiritual successor of "Breakfast." Last installment, I swear.


It took a prodigious and conniving amount of convincing on Joey's part to get him there. Okay, so maybe Seto was just a little intrigued by the elusive promise of an after party of two. And, sure, his haste to be rid of that abominable thing that fluttered in his chest when Joey said he wanted _all_ of his friends to be there had something to do with it, too.

Either way, he found himself staring up at the familiar grungy apartment building, wondering not for the first time why Joey hadn't moved yet. Dismissing the thought, Seto strode inside - one floor up and three doors down - and knocked gently on the door. Within seconds, the door flew open.

"You're early," Joey said through a smirk. He leaned against the door frame, playfully barring entry into the apartment. "As usual."

"Oh, please. We both know this is the only thing I'd come early for," he replied without missing a beat. As expected, Joey caught the double entendre and blushed a healthy dose. But before he could respond, another voice came from inside.

"Who is it, Joey?" Yugi called.

The blond took the cue and stepped away from the door to let his new guest in. "It's just Kaiba," Joey said over his shoulder, and only the memory of Joey's blushing could quell the reflexive discomfort that his flippancy triggered.

The two entered the living room just as Yugi walked in from the kitchenette. Apparently, the short walk wasn't enough to dissipate the shock evident in his face. Nonetheless, Yugi bowed slightly in greeting. "Good to see you," he said pleasantly. "I'd shake your hand but..." He trailed off and held up his flour-caked hands for emphasis.

"Don't worry about it," he replied, and a wary silence settled between them.

Joey cleared his throat. "So, Yug, how are those scones coming?"

"Oh, um, they're ready. Just waiting for the oven to heat up."

"Great, I'll help out."

"Do you need any -?" Seto began, but Joey cut him off.

"No, it's fine, just stay here and listen out for the door." He quickly crossed the room and tugged Yugi's elbow to get him to follow. "Oh," he added as an afterthought, "make yourself comfortable." And then Seto was alone.

To distract himself from wondering what Joey had wanted to tell Yugi in private (because, honestly, how much more obvious could he get?), Seto roamed the living room, stopping to appraise the collection of novels for the millionth time. When that inevitably got boring, he sat on the apparently brand new couch and wondered idly if the two of them had broken it in yet.

It was precisely in the middle of this thought that there came a knock on the door. Seto froze in a moment of foreign indecision, wondering whether to answer it himself or get the blond, or if it was even necessary. By the time the new arrival knocked again, Seto was halfway across the living room. He peered around the door and almost groaned at the sight of Tristan Taylor.

"Oh, sorry, wrong -" Tristan began, then narrowed his eyes in recognition. "Wait, the fuck are _you_ doing here?" he demanded.

"I was invited," Seto replied, "same as you." He let go of the door and walked back into the living room, relishing the utter shock in the other brunet's face and the disgruntled groan that followed. Seto resumed his seat on the couch and folded his arms, content to watch Tristan try to cram himself into the corner of the other side of it to get as far away from him as possible.

Tristan fidgeted for a few seconds more before he sat up and said, "I'm going to find Joey."

"He and Yugi are talking in the kitchen," Seto supplied, and the "in private" went without saying. So, Tristan sat back down and resumed his fidgeting, and Seto almost wished he had let him go, if only to return to the former serenity. Speaking of: "So, how's the Wheeler girl?" he asked, knowing the answer all too well.

"Your brother should know," Tristan quipped back. "Where is the kid anyway?" (Seto could swear he saw a shade of fondness in his eyes.) "If you're anywhere near us, it's usually because he dragged you along, anyway." Before Seto could answer (not that he was going to), Tristan added, "Wait, you said Joey _invited_ you? Why would he do that?"

"I owe him a favor," was all he said. He did not want to go into explicit detail, nor was he going to clarify that this so-called favor actually had yet to occur. Luckily, Tristan dropped the matter. Or, rather, he was distracted by Joey's and Yugi's return.

"We come bearing gifts," Yugi said with far more mirth than the task of carrying a tray of drinks required. He set the tray down on the coffee table in front of the couch. Joey followed suit with the bowl of chips he was toting and took the only open space between Seto and Tristan. The three couch-mates peered up at Yugi, who huffed. "Fine," he said, "I'll just sit on the floor like a good guest." Joey chuckled, but Tristan glared at Seto out of the corner of his eye. "So," Yugi continued once he was comfortable, "who else is coming?"

And that was enough to launch them into conversation. It wasn't nearly as insufferable as Seto had imagined it the entire walk over, a feat he readily attributed to Joey including him enough for him not to feel left out but otherwise being left alone. At some point, in the middle of a side conversation he was having with Yugi, he took a long sip of what he presumed was his glass. A quick nudge from Joey's elbow told him otherwise.

"That was mine," he said with a pout, hand outstretched. Seto shrugged and handed the glass back to him. Smiling, Joey drank from it generously - earning stares from his friends in the process. As he re-set the glass on the table, he caught Yugi's gaze. "What?" he asked defensively. " _What_?" he repeated, switching gaze to Tristan.

"Did...did you just share a drink with Kaiba?" Tristan asked, sounding like he didn't believe the words even as he said them.

For some indiscernible reason, Seto felt his pulse quicken fractionally as he watched Joey splutter for a response. "Well -" he began but was cut off by yet another knock. Joey sighed in relief as he stood up. "Saved," he grumbled as he walked to the door.

Yugi cleared his throat. "So, Tristan," he said, "how's it going at the autoshop?"

Despite the rather obvious ploy, Tristan took the bait and replied, "Can't complain. It pays the bills and I'm learning a lot."

Their conversation continued while Seto pretended to follow along. After a few minutes, he noticed Joey rounding the corner with two new guests. He sat up a little straighter, drawing Yugi's and Tristan's attention.

"Hey, Tea!" Yugi said, his ever-present smile brightening. He stood to give her a rather enthusiastic hug before turning to the other newcomer. "Hey, Ryou. Glad you're both finally here."

Ryou smiled in return and plopped down in the space between Tristan and Seto on the couch. "I bet you are. Tristan is such _riveting_ company, after all," he said playfully, then faced Seto to give him a small nod in greeting.

Tea, however, was not as subtle. Once she and Yugi had disentangled, she glanced warily at Seto before looking questioningly at Joey. Fortunately, the blond wasn't paying attention as he sat on the floor beside Yugi. Seto looked back up at her and caught her eye.

"You can have my seat," he said without smoothly, and he slid down to the floor, too.

"So," Ryou began, "we miss anything?"

"Nothing much," Tristan said, "just Joey and Kaiba being weird."

Yugi face-palmed at the same time that Joey bit out, "Tristan, drop it already."

"Weird how?" Ryou asked, but was cut off by Tea.

"When exactly did you two, um, get so close, anyway?" she asked, suddenly finding the seam of her cushion morbidly fascinating.

Again, Seto felt his heart speed up in anticipation of the answer. He and Joey exchanged a fleeting glance that did little to assuage his undue anxiety. "L-look," he said, "we're not kids anymore. Things change, right?"

"Careful, Jo," Tea said, "you're starting to sound like a real adult." And like that, the matter was dropped. The awkwardness didn't fully evaporate, but it was certainly less palpable, and Seto knew better than to ask the gift horse about its dental plan.

The group went back to chatting until the oven timer went off. Joey hopped up and put a hand on Yugi's shoulder when he did the same. "Don't worry, I got it. You guys relax." Then he bent down and tugged at Seto's elbow. "But you're coming with me."

Seto didn't argue (because, really, his only other options were waiting boredly for Joey to come back and _maybe_ making small talk with Yugi and/or Ryou). Joey didn't release him until they had entered the kitchen, and Seto could swear he felt the others' eyes on him all the while.

Joey sighed softly and grabbed a pair of potholders. Seto leaned against the wall behind him and watched as he bent down to take out the tray of scones. Then, struck with an idea, Seto approached him wearing a mischievous smirk. He rested his hands on the countertop, on either side of Joey's waist. He stepped in so that their bodies were barely touching and pressed his lips to Joey's ear. "You know they're probably talking about us right now," he whispered.

Joey shuddered, and it was all Seto could do to keep from wrapping his arms around him completely and having his way with the blond. The task proved even more difficult when Joey sniffed a laugh and looked at him over his shoulder, his eyes burning with some unnameable, yet unmistakable, emotion.

"Let 'em talk," he said softly. He leaned in for a quick kiss, and the sensation of lips on his lingered. While he was distracted, Joey slipped out of his hold to go to his fridge and grab a six pack and tall bottle of vodka. Juggling the items so that he could grab the tray, too, he turned to Seto and nodded to a cabinet above his head. "Grab the shot glasses, will you?"

Seto rolled his eyes, more for being so caught unawares than in irritation at the request. "Fine," he said, retrieving the glasses, "but you owe me extra for helping you play host."

"Hm. We'll see," Joey replied, the smile evident in his voice. He turned to head back to the living room, Seto following behind.

"Finally!" Tristan said as Joey placed the booze on the coffee table. "Soda's nice, but a man needs something _strong_." He dug in his pocket and whipped out a utility tool to open the vodka.

Joey handed out the beers, but Tea refused hers. "Thanks, but I'm cutting back. We have a show coming up, so I gotta stay in shape. I'll do shots with you guys, though."

"Okay, but you have to do double," Yugi said with a wink, and Tea laughed.

Once everyone had been served food and drink, Ryou leaned forward, elbows resting on his knees, and asked, "So, Joey, what are we celebrating?"

Joey grinned (and, no, Seto's heart did _not_ skip a beat. It was probably just the cheap alcohol. After all, he was accustomed to finer quality). "Why, I'm glad you asked. You're gonna want to drink to this." He then lined everyone's shot glasses up and generously poured vodka in each. He pushed a glass towards each of his friends and said, "After months of looking...I finally found a new apartment."

The group fell into pin-drop silence for all of a second before erupting into a cacophony of praise.

"Congratulations, Joey! That's great!"

"I can't wait to see the new place!"

"Ooh, we'll have to take you furniture shopping!"

"I'll get started on the housewarming party!"

And of course: "It's about time." Seto felt his lips tug into a smile, and he hid it behind his shot glass before anyone could see. This prompted the others to do the same.

"Cheers!" They others cried. They all clinked glasses before downing their drinks.

"Come on, Tea," Joey said, pouring her another shot. "Double, remember? Yugi's orders."

Tea sighed but clenched a fist in determination before gulping down another. As soon as she banged the glass back down, her friends whooped again.

Once properly inebriated, the group relaxed into easy conversation and before long, Joey brought out his board games. He and Tristan tried (and epically failed) to coerce the others into playing strip versions of each of them - Tea especially.

"Gotta give them points for trying," Ryou mumbled to Yugi, earning the other's snickering.

So, they played the _normal_ versions of Joey's rather eclectic assortment, often opting to move onto another before they had finished the previous. Eventually, they moved on to dueling.

"Let's do brackets!" Yugi suggested excitedly. He brought out a pen from nowhere and looked around for some paper.

"You know," Ryou began, pulling out his own deck, "I've always wanted to do a four-way to figure out the sides, like you did in -"

"Battle City?" Seto finished with an amused smirk. "It seems my genius left an impression."

Joey rolled his eyes. "Settle down, rich boy. It's not like you invented tournaments." Seto stuck out his tongue at him (and somewhere far in the back of his mind, he balked at his own immaturity). "Hey, keep that in your mouth before I make you put it somewhere else." And, by God, he actually winked.

Seto blushed a little, which he convinced himself was the alcohol. Yugi cleared his throat. "All right guys, I have the score sheet set up. Let's duel!"

"Jeez, is that the time?" Tea slurred, holding her watch comically close to her face. Ryou, sprawled out on the couch beside her, hid his laughter behind the back of his hand as he watched her struggle to her feet. "I gotta get going."

"I'll give you a ride," Tristan said from where he had slid to the floor. He made to sit up, but Joey grabbed his arm.

"Oh, no you don't," he said. "I'm calling you a cab."

Tristan huffed and puffed out his chest in indignation but gave in. "Fine, I'll wait."

After Joey had called the taxis, they all began to clean up. Seto, of course, helped as well, but as they finished up and the guest count dwindled, he had fewer and fewer reasons to stay. So he loitered in the living room until Joey took notice.

"Hey, Kaiba," he called to him, "you mind taking my deck back to my bedroom?" He handed him said cards. "I'm just wanna say goodbye to Tristan."

Seto gleaned Joey's meaning immediately, and, as he glanced over to Tristan, he wondered if the other brunet did, too.

"You know where it is?" Tristan asked, half-joking, half-curious.

"Yeah," Seto replied. "I've been -" he paused and gave Tristan a meaningful look - "I mean, I feel like I've been there before."

It had only taken a few minutes for the telltale sound of the front door slamming to ring through the apartment. Seto leaned back against the headboard of Joey's bed and idly thumbed through his deck as he listened to the approaching footsteps. Finally, Joey entered the bedroom and leaned against the door as he closed it. Seto picked up one of the cards and turned it to him. "I'll trade you for this one."

Joey snickered. "Now I know you're drunk," he said as he approached the bed. He hesitated before climbing onto it. He crept forward until he was straddling Seto's lap, and he plucked the card out of his hand to set it aside. "Did you have fun tonight?"

The silence was its own affirmation; Seto was well aware of this, yet still couldn't bring himself to answer. Instead, he placed his hands on Joey's waist and asked, "So, when does the after party start?"

Joey give him a reproachful look but didn't press it. He leaned over to reach into his bedside pedestal and retrieved a shiny key. "As soon as we get to the new place."

The new apartment was a vast improvement over the old. For one, it was in a clean building that stood on a brightly lit block of a neighborhood with an actual name. It was also noticeably bigger, with wider halls and an actual master bedroom. In fact, it was this latter feature that attracted Seto's attention most.

"I figured you'd get the grand tour during the housewarming," Joey said as he led Seto back to the fully furnished room. "And while I have you, we can christen the new place."

And who was Seto to say no to that?

* * *

Joey stared up at the ceiling, one hand behind his reclined head, the other absently tracing lazy circles in the sheets. They weren't exactly touching, but occasionally Joey's slow fingers would brush against his, and that was enough to anchor him to this moment as he pretended not to be watching the blond out of the corner of his eye. It wasn't that he was getting sentimental - hardly. But Joey was clearly mulling over something, and Seto knew it was only a matter of time before he vocalized it. So, rather than bask in the post-coitus warmth, he waited.

"What were you doing there?" Joey said at last, with no preamble. His eyes flickered over to Seto's before returning to the ceiling. "At the Pug. What were you doing there that night?"

He watched Joey's fingers, this time tapping lightly on the mattress arhythmically, as he thought back to all those months ago. Images of a cool night and broken sidewalks and dishevelled bedsheets flitted across his mind, but he struggled to think back further for a motive. He found none.

"I knew _this_ would be on the cards," he said confidently nonetheless. Joey groaned at the lame pun (because seriously did everything have to revolve around Duel Monsters?) before laughing quietly. "Knew it from the start."

Joey abruptly turned to prop himself up on his elbow and look directly at Seto. He deliberately did not meet his gaze. "Oh yeah?" he said with a cheeky smile. "You saw this little disaster coming and still showed up?"

Seto remained silent, but Joey was used to that - he had to be by now, right? Joey sniffed a laugh and poked him in the shoulder.

"Who would have thought that something like... _this_ would've started at some place called the _Musty Pug_?"

* * *

A/N: Okay...okay. I think I'm done for real this time.


End file.
